Champions League - All posts tagged Champions League

Sometimes reality is better than fiction — and for Atletico Madrid players and fans, this soccer season has been a pure fairy tale.

On paper, Atletico shouldn’t even have reached the Champions League Final on Saturday, let alone have a decent chance of actually winning the coveted soccer trophy. The Madrid team is one of the most heavily in debt in Spanish sports, which means it lacks the financial firepower to buy high-profile players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale of Real Madrid, which it’ll meet in the final.

Could Germany’s success in the Champions League be a function of economic woes in traditionally strong soccer nations? As austerity measures get a grip on the broader economy less money is likely to find its way into the soccer clubs, but German clubs benefit from industry sponsorship, a broad fanbase and large public investments.

Turkish football heavies Galatasary, anchored by former Chelsea FC superstar Didier Drogba, marched to Champions League glory on Tuesday night, dispatching Germany’s Schalke to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2001.

Could a win for AC Milan in Wednesday’s game against FC Barcelona move more voters in favor of Silvio Berlusconi? The former Italian prime minister and owner of AC Milan has already used his soccer club to get attention when it bought Mario Balotelli earlier this year.

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